Advice required please!

Hello

Hope someone can advise me on the best course of action.

I am 37 and have been working in IT for 20 years and want to retrain as an accountant. I have bought the CIMA BA1 self study book and have enjoyed working through it, but before I commit to paying money for membership fees etc I want to take a look at AAT to determine that I have chosen the correct path.

Ultimately I want to study the qualification that enables me to be a good all rounder within finance, therefore opening up the most doors employment wise. I also may wish to be self employed at some point - which qualification suits these criteria the best?

Best regards

Comments

  • Clintm15
    Clintm15 Registered Posts: 248 Dedicated contributor 🦉
    Hello,

    I would say that you have chosen the best path already. CIMA is management accounting and will contain more finance related material than AAT. It also operates at a higher level.
    AAT
    Level 2 - 2011
    Level 3 - 2012
    Level 4 - 2013

    ACCA
    F4 - Corporate Law - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F5 - Performance Management - Dec 2014 (passed)
    F6 - Taxation - Dec 2013 (passed)
    F7 - Financial Reporting - Jun 2014 (passed)
    F8 - Audit & Assurance - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F9 - Financial Management - Jun 2015 (passed)
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    Thank you for your response Clint. I've been hearing conflicting stories about what to do hence posting here.
  • Clintm15
    Clintm15 Registered Posts: 248 Dedicated contributor 🦉
    No problem.

    I have one follow-up question. When you say 'self-employed', what role are you envisioning?
    AAT
    Level 2 - 2011
    Level 3 - 2012
    Level 4 - 2013

    ACCA
    F4 - Corporate Law - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F5 - Performance Management - Dec 2014 (passed)
    F6 - Taxation - Dec 2013 (passed)
    F7 - Financial Reporting - Jun 2014 (passed)
    F8 - Audit & Assurance - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F9 - Financial Management - Jun 2015 (passed)
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    edited December 2017
    The self employed role would be business / personal accounts preparation / advice for government submission
  • Clintm15
    Clintm15 Registered Posts: 248 Dedicated contributor 🦉
    OK,

    So, to clarify you are requiring -

    For possible self-employment:
    -Accounts preparation.
    -Some tax knowledge

    For potential future corporate roles:
    -Finance

    Is that correct?

    So your options are -

    CIMA - geared more towards management accounting and probably more suitable for future roles in Finance.
    ACCA - contains more law and audit.
    AAT - contains elements of all but at a more introductory level.

    It's quite difficult to make a certain recommendation, this might be the reason you have had conflicting feedback.
    For example, ACCA contains really strong units relating to finance and CIMA has units on tax. AAT is a good bridge to both, but at your age with your history of technical experience it might be more suitable for you to start ACCA or CIMA.

    Personally, as an ACCA student I am bias towards it. The ACCA offers a degree option that I found very tempting as a sweetener for future employment options and you can gain that after completing the middle level with no student debt.

    I hope this helps.
    AAT
    Level 2 - 2011
    Level 3 - 2012
    Level 4 - 2013

    ACCA
    F4 - Corporate Law - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F5 - Performance Management - Dec 2014 (passed)
    F6 - Taxation - Dec 2013 (passed)
    F7 - Financial Reporting - Jun 2014 (passed)
    F8 - Audit & Assurance - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F9 - Financial Management - Jun 2015 (passed)
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    Thank you - I think what is putting me off CIMA is that I hear it gets very difficult, and even some AAT qualified individuals struggle.

    I wouldnt want to invest my own money into a qualification that I may not have the required brain power to complete, so was erring on the AAT as a "taster" to ascertain my aptitude for accounting, if that makes sense?

  • Clintm15
    Clintm15 Registered Posts: 248 Dedicated contributor 🦉
    That makes perfect sense.
    AAT
    Level 2 - 2011
    Level 3 - 2012
    Level 4 - 2013

    ACCA
    F4 - Corporate Law - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F5 - Performance Management - Dec 2014 (passed)
    F6 - Taxation - Dec 2013 (passed)
    F7 - Financial Reporting - Jun 2014 (passed)
    F8 - Audit & Assurance - Dec 2015 (passed)
    F9 - Financial Management - Jun 2015 (passed)
  • Sunflower1o2
    Sunflower1o2 Registered, Tutor Posts: 9
    AAT is a good introduction to accounting - learning about double entry and Debits and Credits (Level 2)
    When you get to level 4 you will know how to prepare financial statements, have a reasonable idea about budgeting and be able to understand tax, (choosing the tax options of course).
    CIMA is the best qualification if you want to go into industry accounting - and yes parts of it are hard - but anything in life that is worth doing is usually hard. What helped me through my CIMA was being around other people who had already completed it. They helped me with the bits I was most stuck on.
    ACCA qualification will probably be as equally difficult as CIMA, I tend to think it is better for accountants that want to work in practise, but this is something I have never done.
    My CIMA qualification definitely opened doors for me and I got some great experience, for example: implementing Sage 200 for a medium sized manufacturing company. I would not have had as many opportunities without this qualification.
    The decision is yours but my recommendation would be AAT and then CIMA - especially with your IT knowledge - I think with these you would be an asset to any progressive company.
    (I don't think you should worry about what age you are - learning new things is fun at any age!)
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    Sorry Im confused - is the AAT a hinderance to getting employed in that case?
  • mergen
    mergen Registered Posts: 112 New contributor 🐸
    edited December 2017
    Without experience you are not going to get far.
    I know people with CIMA and ACCA that don't have any experience and are struggling to find jobs.
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    edited December 2017
    Hi Mergen

    I appreciate that getting a job without experience is difficult, but surely gaining at least some knowledge of accounting is better than nothing. If I do the AAT level 2 and seek employment in an entry level position?
  • mergen
    mergen Registered Posts: 112 New contributor 🐸
    edited December 2017
    Definitely do start AAT but at the same time look for an entry level position.
    Volunteer if you must.
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    Yes thats the plan
  • CSan89
    CSan89 Registered Posts: 207
    What @mergen and @Mickdundee are saying is that there is a lot of competition for entry level positions in accountancy, I managed to find a job after level 3 but I have a friend who didn't find a job until level 4 and that was through a friend.

    I would personally start at level 2 and work from there. It is possible to complete level 2 in 3 months but the fundamental rules of bookkeeping that you will learn are valuable for level 3 on wards.

    With Making tax digital on its way in the next couple of years it may be the perfect time for someone with 20 years of IT knowledge to start an accountancy career.
    AAT Level 2&3 - 2016
    AAT Level 4 - 2017
    Personal Tax, Business Tax and External Auditing

    ACA/CTA -
    Certificate Level - Jan 2019
  • Shibusa
    Shibusa Registered Posts: 8
    CSan89

    Thanks - when you say entry level job I presume the candidate would have to posses at least rudimentary prior knowledge of accounting? As you say I think the best plan of attack would be to get Level 2 then job hunt
  • Sunflower1o2
    Sunflower1o2 Registered, Tutor Posts: 9
    AAT is a good introduction to accounting - learning about double entry and Debits and Credits (Level 2)
    When you get to level 4 you will know how to prepare financial statements, have a reasonable idea about budgeting and be able to understand tax, (choosing the tax options of course).
    CIMA is the best qualification if you want to go into industry accounting - and yes parts of it are hard - but anything in life that is worth doing is usually hard. What helped me through my CIMA was being around other people who had already completed it. They helped me with the bits I was most stuck on.
    ACCA qualification will probably be as equally difficult as CIMA, I tend to think it is better for accountants that want to work in practise, but this is something I have never done.
    My CIMA qualification definitely opened doors for me and I got some great experience implementing Sage 200 for a medium sized manufacturing company. I would not have had as many opportunities without this qualification.
    The decision is yours but my recommendation would be AAT and then CIMA - especially with your IT knowledge - I think with these you would be an asset to any progressive company.
  • CSan89
    CSan89 Registered Posts: 207
    I would hope so. Sounds like a good plan :+1:
    AAT Level 2&3 - 2016
    AAT Level 4 - 2017
    Personal Tax, Business Tax and External Auditing

    ACA/CTA -
    Certificate Level - Jan 2019
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